Canada's top soldier has vowed that the findings of the official investigation into the deadly grass fire at CFB Wainwright will be made public, as the country continues to grieve four soldiers killed during a live-fire exercise in Alberta.
Prime Minister Mark Carney addressed the House of Commons on Monday morning, telling MPs that 50 investigators from the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service, supported by the RCMP, are now at the base. Carney named all four fallen soldiers and paid tribute to each of them, and the House held a moment of silence.
The official toll stands at four dead, 39 injured and 19 in critical condition. The fire broke out on Saturday during Exercise Apollo Shooter, a live-fire training exercise at the Alberta base.
The original cause remains unknown. Extreme wind — an 82 km/h gust was recorded — drove the grass fire roughly a kilometre in under a minute, and satellite data detected the fire burning for hours before mid-afternoon.
The commander's pledge to publish the findings sets up a public accounting of how a training exercise turned fatal, and what the military will change before live-fire training resumes.
